Hydraulic drive



Feb. 19, 1957 P. E. DE FORD 2,781,675

HYDRAULIC DRIVE 4Filed Aug. 17, 1955 4 sheets-sheet 1 Feb. 19, 1957 P. E. DE FORD 2,781,675

HYDRAULIC DRIVE Filed Aug. 17, 195s 4 sheets-shea 2 b', Pev/ E. Def-'0rd LZ y IN V EN TOR. zY man., auen; Amm

Feb. 19,1957 P, E. DE FRD HYDRAULIC DRIVE- 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 1'7. 1953 Perl E. DeFord INVENTOR.

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Feb. 19, 1957 P. E. DE FORD 2,781,675

HYDRAULIC DRIVE l Filed Aug. 17, 1953 4 lSheets-Sheet 4 I .l1 fh A A A l A LU LIJ LU LU LU LU LU LU LU LU Perl E. Def-'ord L 1N VEN TOR.

r l ma.. j BY im Hmm vce nlrana-turn;y DRIVE Perl E; De FordilTWin- Falls; Idaho, assigner of one-half to ErnersonvA.`1-`olman, TwinFalls,y Idaho ApplicationAugust 17, 1953,: Serial No. 374,569 t 5 Claims. Y (CL -74-677) "i This invention 'relates I'generally to transmission devices l5 andpertainsv more particularly to an improvedform of transmissionof the automatic type particularly adapted Y' for use in theA automotive-held.

As conventionally providedlin automotive vehicles,- 'a speed-reducingjtransmissionis interposed between the 20 primel mover and propellershaft for permitting variable speedy ratios betweenthe primefmoverand the propeller shaftffto '-satisfyf the load demand as compared-to the particulancharacteristicsof thefprilnefmover. yitis well, known-that the power delivered by any rotary-power V25 plantishproportiorialto' theproduct of ythe `speed -of the;l powerlplantiand the torquegof the output-"Shah,l .in other; wordsif either the'speed ortofrqueare varied lby avgivenn" factolnmthe pfowerwdelivered is' varied-in 'a like*manner--` It is.` for this reason that-speedreduction-transmissions-30 alrewnecessaryainasinuch asti'tis desirablet'o-permitllthe- 1 power plant to'operateat suiiioientispeedfto'deliver the'j necessary powertoV lthe propellerf'shaft -u-nder Yany lspeed' conditions of thelattert' At ythe present tixne,-the-mam-uallyy contnollled-typelor' 35 so-calledistandard:transmissionsare being more'and more r replaced by the automatic-type to relieve the dfniverof the attention necessary for A manual ishiftingi Although numerous types-fotautomatictransrnissions have` been e* developfedytheir prime disadvantage-residesin theirfhigh 40 initialy cost, complexity?V of design-land consequent high? cost 'of maintenance lin addition to their ratherlarge` bulk.` l! l It is. therefore a primary-object of thisinvention to provide an improved formV of transmission havingj inri-f VA45 nitely variable torque characteristics and a whiohissrnall 'Y in size, compactdin construction, and 'of"1ightweighty;r the Vtransmission bengof the' fullyy automatic type-in that it requiresfno controllingfrnechanism ftfo varytheggear ratio thereof. 50

Anotherv object `of this invention lis to 'provide 'an iinproved A trans-mission which Y @incorporates l hydrodynamic couplings: in conjunctionl'wvith an impro-ved system of' planetary:'gearingobviatingthenneed for either lexternalv or internal .control Vdevices and foruse off such mecha 55 nisrnfas' overrunningclutches and the like.l

Stillianothernobject-of this inventionis to provi-de an improved-format hydro-dynamic coupling; Y* Y A furtherfobjectof this invention resides linthe pro vsionuof a hydro-dynamiek couplingy assemblyincluding'V 6 0 a driver housing-and. aapair of runners, one of therun ners :including aring gear and the other a-'sun gear with double planetary gearing..employedtherebetweenfor per- 'Y mining-'rotation of ythe runners Ain the saine direction.'

These:P together Hwith 'other Vobjects and V`advantages A65 1 which-:Will become subsequently-apparent reside in the details oftconstructionfand operation as more fully hereinafter' described and claimed, reference being had Vto the :accompanying 'drawings` forming a part hereof., wherein-like numerals refer to like partslthroughout, and --70 in which: f Y

Figure 1- is aflongitudinal lsection takenthrough Vav 1 Patented Feb. i9, 129577',

transmission'V assemblyonstructed lin accordance vwith thisrinvention showing details of the 'internaleconstruc- Figure 2 is aV transverse vertical section taken substantially alongthe p lane of section'line 2+-2 in Figure 1 showing'details of the planetary gearing; f

Figure 3 is a View similar to-Figure l' but showing a,

modified-form of construction;-

Figurej4is a -transverse'vertical section taken substanftially-alongltheuplaneof section line 4-4in Figure'S showing-y details of the modifiedplanetary gearing;

Figure-5 is a longitudinal sectional- View taken throughY the' oil sealassembly; Y

Figureisr a transverse verticalf-sectiontaken substantiallyialong the plane of section iline4 6-6 of Figure 5;

Figure? is a plan -view of"a--modiedfform of hydrodynamic-'coupling elements;

Figurek 8 is avertieal section taken-through a; portionl of a'hydro-dynamie#coupling constructedfin accordance with Figure 7;` f l y Figure -9 isa horizontal section taken lsubstantially along-thre'plane of sectionflinefS-Q of Figure 8; and

FigureylO is a/side elevationalvviewfpartly in section srhowingiaportioneof an internaleornbustion engineghav-Lv ing the improved transmission5 frnechanisrn-y secured theretoY-fl -V Referring Inow morepart-icularly2to Figure l, reference numeral' 510 findicatesifgenerallythe cranku shaft of an internal combustion:engineawhichfis 'providedat its ends ments 14 extend, for securing the housing assembly `indi- 1 catedf:z generallyfbyfthereference :character A16 thereto;

The#fhousingfassemblyf includes afforward section 18j and Sa rearwardxsection 620,? feachprovidedl 1 with a mar-y ginal ilan'ge22Ithrough-'whichthe fasteningelernents 24 extendrffor*securingllthe twoportion's-.of the housing togethers:v Theilinnen' face of the f forward` sectiony 18 is provided'. ,with'fanr annular? groove`-26 'of semicircular coniiguIationr-inicross'ysection andwthis'v groove has Ia Y is similarly -providedxwithffa grooveil and associated' radial-'vanesllqs'o thatthis y'end ofi-the liousingalso f presentsa hydraulic driverif y yThe inner face of'the forward sectionl i3 is provided tion-20 Eis; provided'fwith fa registering opening 36; A

driven-shaft;-'38 projeets.within'fthehousingl 116 throughl e theJopeningrG' with itsrfreeend receivedwithintheV withf'a recessw34centrally thereof and the rearward secg recess 34Fand, suitable, bearingskland lfilare provided forsjournalingfthis 4shaftwithinf'fth'e housing.- A pairf of,runnerfniembers;indicated generallyby the reference characters-Maud 46.respectively arerjournaled withinv the Vhousing on the'drivenshaft 38 and theopposite` end faces. -of-h these'runner kmembers are provided with jthe i j annulargrooves A48 and.r 50 f and vassociated:radial vanes l 52 and y5'4- fforcooperation with the 'aforementioned'- grooves andfvanesy v26, -28 fand 30,132 'respectivelyymk Y y whereby rotation of the housingflf'will eectisimilarf" rotation of the runnersa The reary runner, .L46 providedlfwithf 'a longitudinal l bore 56 of slightly,greaterdiameter-than-thedrivenfshaftY;l

38 so `thatfthe lneedle bearing rnember. 58 may -be vutilized in journaling 'this ,runnen of the.. driven shafti inthe` man.

videdQwith an extension' or boss,titl.whichterminatesflush...,1

with vtheir-ont faceof the;l runner member ,44 4andyvhose vfreeend is splinedffor receptiongof the; sungeartflin the manner shown. The runnerinernber44/is, journaled. l

60 of the rear runner 46 and a spacing washer 66 is disposed between the adjacent end faces of the main body portions of the runners 44 and 46 so that these faces are disposed in slightly spaced relation. Likewise, the opposite end faces of the runner members are slightly spaced from the inner opposite end faces of theV housing 16.

Referring to both Figures 1 and 2, it will be seen that the forward end face of the runner 44 is provided with a circular recess with its circumferentialsurface formed with teeth presenting the ring gear 68 and it will be noted that the free end of the driven shaft 38 is suitably splined as at 70 for receiving the spider member 72 carrying the inner and outer shaft members 74 and 76 respectively. An inner set of planet gears 78 are journaled on `the inner shaft 74 and these planet gears mesh with the sun gear 62 in the manner shown most clearly in Figure 2, whereas the outer set of planet gears 80 journaled on the outer shaft 76 mesh with both the inner set of planet gears and the ring gear 68, so as to establish drive between the sun gear 62 and the'ring gear 68, through the medium of the spider 72 orbitally carrying the two sets of planet gears, as will be manifest. By this construction, rotation of the drive shaft in one direction effects the same rotation to all of the members 44, 46 and 38.

A retaining washer 82 and thrust washer 84 maintain the various planet gears in proper relation on their corresponding shaft 74 and 76.

The adjacent faces of the runner members 44 and 46 are provided with registering grooves 86 and 88 respectively and corresponding vane members 90 and 92 to effect a hydro-dynamic coupling action between these two runner members when they are rotating at dierent speeds. f

Consideraing a vehicle at rest and during initial acceleration, it will be seen that the driven` shaft 38 and l spider 72 will be stationary whereas the crank shaft 10 and consequently the housing 20 will b'e rotated at a relatively high angular velocity causing considerable torque to be imparted through the hydro-dynamic couplings to the runner members 44 and 46. Since the spider Y 72 is at rest, the runner 44 will rotate relatively slowly whereas the runner 46 will rotate faster due to the gear reduction through the planet gearsto the ring gear. At this point, the relative speed of rotation between the runners 44 and 46 will be at a maximum so that the torque imparted therebetween due to their hydro-dynamic coupling will also be at a maximum, the net over-all elect being that the maximum torque is imparted to the driven shaft 38 when the same is maintained in a stationary position. As the vehicle is accelerated and the driven shaft 38 is speeded up, the diierence in relative rotation between the runners 44 and 46 will be lessened until such time as these runner members are rotating at the same speed wherein the planetary system is locked up or effects a straight-through drive, the only speed reduction between the crank shaft 10 and the driven shaft 38 occurring due to slippage between the hydro-dynamic couplings between the housing 16 and the runner members 44 and 46. It will be noted that the couplings between the housing 16 and the rear runner 46 is of largerarea than the front coupling so that the former imparts more torque which is particularly beneficial during low vehicle speed-high torque demand.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 3 and 4, it will be seen that the transmission incorporates the housing indicated generally by the reference character 94 having the forward and rear sections 96 and 98 respectively, wherein the vane element 109 and 102 include the semicircular extension 104 and 106 cooperating with the half ring vanes 108 and 110 in the runner assemblies indi-A provision of this double set of vane members effects a more eiicient transfer of energy.

The ring gear 118 is formed in the recess in the runner 112 and the sun gear 120 is secured to the free end of the boss 122 of the runner 114, the runners being journaled on the drive shaft 124. The spider 126 is splined to the inner end of the drive shaft 124 and carries the inner and outer shafts 128 and 130 which rotatably receive the planet gear assemblies 132 and the planet gears 134 respectively. The outer set of planet gears 134 mesh with the ring gear 118 and the inner planet gear assemblies 132 incorporate stepped gears 136 and 138, the former of which mesh with the outer planet gears 134 and the latter of which mesh with the sun gear in the manner shown most clearly in Figure 4, this manner of t gearing permitting a reduced over-al1 diameter of the transmission housing assembly.

An oil seal assembly indicated generally by the reference character is provided at the rear side of the housing 94 and this seal incorporates a plug member 142 having an enlarged head 144 and a threaded shoulder portion 146 engaged within the boss 148 on the rear side of the housing. The free end of the plug is provided with a portion of reduced diameter about which the corrugated sleeve 148 is concentrically disposed with one end thereof in abutment with the face 150 and the other end in engagement with the packing Washer 152 provided with the guide fingers 154 received in the longitudinal recesses 156 in the plug. The packing material 158 is disposed between the bearing 160 and the washer 152 so that as the plug is threaded inwardly of the housing, the sleeve 148 will be deformed in accordion fashion along its surface so as to be forced against the adjacent inner surface of the housing. The springs 160 normally maintain the washer 152 in extended position.

Referring now more particularly to Figure 10, it will be seen that the crank shaft 162 is provided with a longitudinal bore 164 communicating with the galley passage 166 in the engine block and being supplied with oil under pressure from the pump 168 so that engine oil is pumped into the transmission assembly 170 through this passage 164. The oil is returned or forced out of the assembly 170 through the return line 172 in the form of a longitudinal bore in the crank shaft to a line 174 extending to the oil cooler 176 and from there through the return line 178 to the engine oil pan 180. In this manner, the oil within the transmission 170 will be maintained at a substantially constant temperature.

In order to retain the proper amount of oil in the transmission assembly, a ball valve 179 is provided in each of the passages 164 and 172 and the springs 181 coacting therewith operate to provide check valves in these passages, thereby preventing the oil from running out of the transmission when the engine is not operating.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 7-9, an improved form of hydraulic coupling assembly is shown which is incorporated between the runner 182 and the housing 184 or between the two runners, this coupling incorporating an annular groove 186 in each of the members 182 and 184 into which the half ring blade members 188 are secured in the manner shown most clearly in Figures 7 and 8. In this manner, the members 182 and V184 form annular passageways for circulation of oil therethrough in the manner shown by the arrows in Figure 8 such that the ow of oil will be in a helical path. Annular trough members 190'are secured to the vane 188 and these troughs are preferably of semicircular configuration in cross section and are provided with the radial semicircular dctlector plate 192, in the manner shown. As indicated by the arrows in Figure 9, it will be seen that the flow path of-the oil as affected by the trough members 19t) and their vanes or deilector plates 192 is in the form of a corrugated strip. In this manner, a maximum of eiciency is obtained in imparting drive between the members 182 and 184,'as will be manifest.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will be readily understood and further explanation is believed to` be unnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A power transmission device comprising a drive shaft, a housing secured to said drive shaft, having its opposite ends presenting impellers, a driven shaft journaled within said housing, a first runner member having a cylindrical main body portion and a longitudinally projecting boss, said ruimer member having a longitudinal bore receiving said driven shaft, a second runner member having a main body portion of cylindrical configuration, the second runner member being journaled on said boss, the end face of the second runner member opposite the first runner member being recessed, an internal ring gear formed in that portion of the second runner member detining said recess, a sun gear secured to the free end of said boss, a first set of planet gears meshing with said sun gear, a second set of planet gears meshing with said ring gear, means for imparting rotation of one set of planet gears to the other set of planet gears, and a spider secured to said driven shaft and supporting both sets of planet gears for orbital rotation thereof, the adjacent faces of said first and second runner members each being provided with an annular groove, vane members in said grooves whereby the first and second runner members are hydraulically coupled, the recessed end face of said second runner member and the opposite end face of said first runner member each being provided with an annular groove, vane members in the last mentioned grooves in opposed relation to said impellers, whereby said housing and said first and second runners are hydraulically coupled.

2. A power transmission device comprising a drive shaft, a housing secured to said drive shaft, having its opposite ends presenting impellers, a driven shaft journaled within said housing, a rst runner member having a cylindrical main body portion and a longitudinally projecting boss, said runner member having a longitudinal bore receiving said driven shaft, a second runner member having a main body portion of cylindrical configuration, the second runner member being journaled on said boss, the end face of the second runner member opposite the first runner member being recessed, an internal ring gear formed in that portion of the second runner member defining said recess, a sun gear secured to the free end of said boss, a first set of planet gears meshingwith said sun gear, a second set of planet gears meshing with Ysaid ring gear and the first set of planet gears, and a spider secured to said driven shaft and supporting both sets of'planet gears for orbital rotation thereof, the adjacent faces of said first and second runner members each beingprovided with an annular groove, vane members in said grooves whereby the first and second runner members are hydraulically coupled, the recessed end face of said second runner member and the opposite end face of said rst runner member each being provided with an annular groove, vane members in the last mentioned grooves in opposed relation to said impellers, whereby said housing and said first and second runners are hydraulically coupled.

3. A power transmission device comprising a drive shaft, a housing secured to said drive shaft, having its opposite ends presenting impellers, a driven shaft journaled within said housing, a first runner member having a cylindrical main body portion and a longitudinally projecting boss, said runner member having a longitudinal bore receiving said driven shaft, a second runner member having a main body portion of cylindrical configuration, the second runner member being journaled on said boss, the end face of the second runner member opposite the first runner member being recessed, an internal ring gear formed in that portion of the second runner member defining said recess, a sun gear secured to the free end of said boss, a first set of planet gears meshing with said sun gear, a second set of planet gears comprising integral pairs of gears, one gear of each pair meshing with said ring gear and the other -gear of each pair meshing with the first set of planet gears, and a spider secured to said driven shaft and supporting both sets of planet gears for orbital rotation thereof, the adjacent faces of said first and second runner members each being provided with an annular groove, vane members in said grooves whereby the rst and second runner members are hydraulically coupled, the recessed end face of said second runner member and the opposite end face of said first runner member each being provided with an annular groove, vane members in the last mentioned grooves in opposed relation to said impellers, whereby said housing and said first and second runners are hydraulically coupled.

4. In a hydraulic coupling assembly, a driver and a runner having adjacent parallel surfaces, each of said surfaces being provided with an annular groove of semicircular cross section, a set of semicircular varies disposed in circumferentially spaced relation within each of said grooves, each set of said vanes having registering notches in their inner edges, an annular trough member secured within the notches in each set of vanes, and circumferentially spaced deiiector plates secured within said trough members and arranged at an angle to said semi-circular vanes.

5. The ycombination of claim 4 wherein said trough members areof semicircular cross section, the free edges of said deector plates in corresponding trough members being disposed in closely spaced relation.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNTTED STATES PATENTS 

